Day 57 - Yellowstone to Bozeman, MT

The elevation in Yellowstone was too much for Kristen to handle, so we shortened our stay by one day and headed out of the park. On our way out, we stopped by two of the Visitor's Centers to try and find the Centennial Park Passport stamp that we heard about from a ranger in the Grand Tetons. We never did find this elusive stamp, but we did find the famous Yellowstone bus in the parking lot of the Canyon Village Visitor's Center. We heard that this was a low snow year and typically there is still 2-3 feet of snow on the ground here.

Now at 9,200 feet, we headed towards the northern exit of Yellowstone and descended a very narrow and uneven stretch of road. Once the road started to also get bumpy and add more curves, we slowed to a crawl, but eventually made it to Mammoth Hot Springs.

While we were stopped along the side of the road a lone bison decided to pay us a visit.

We made a quick visit to the Albright Visitor's Center, our last stop before exiting Yellowstone. If you look closely, you can see some elk lounging in the field.

Now headed out of the park, the road opened up and flattened out which made for a much more enjoyable ride.

The famous Gardiner Gate at the northern entrance/ exit to Yellowstone.

Now in Gardiner, Montana, we stopped on the side of the road to figure out our next move. We grabbed a quick snack and determined that we should be able to make it to Bozeman.

On a map, we found a KOA campsite located in Bozeman. However, once we arrived, we could not find the large KOA sign like we were used to and passed right by the location at least twice. So we stopped at the campground that was supposed to be a KOA and asked the lady inside if there was room for us. She found a spot for us and the informed us that the campground had recently changed from a KOA to Bozeman Hot Springs campground--which is why there was no longer a large KOA sign.

Hot dogs for dinner roasted on the tree stump fire pit.

Next to the campground was the Bozeman Hot Springs. Inside, there was a family atmosphere where kids and parents played in the cold and hot water pools that were fed by spring water. Outside, there were several other pools set in a Polynesian scene. Since this was Saturday night, this was the place to be in Bozeman and was a hang out for the local high school and college kids.

#Montana #YellowstoneNationalPark #Wyoming #BozemanHotSprings #GardinerGate